Page 15 of Hidden Vows
“Where else would I be, Ms. Marybelle?”And what an unfortunate truth that is.
Managing this place has practically become my entire purpose in life. Even with Ava reintroducing me to our little world of Ashford Falls, I still don’t go out and do anything unless it’s with her, Quinn, and Emily. I might go to Murphy’s once or twice a week for dinner, but that’s it.
If I’m not with one of them, I’m in this store or my apartment, baking or reading. I used to have such a drive to do more. I strived to learn new recipes, I endeavored to create my own, I volunteeredmy time. I had friends—a life. I was more than just my job—I wanted more for myself.
I always dreamed of opening my own bakery and coffee shop, but then I had my heart broken, and I mistook losing one dream for losing them all.
“I know, I meant I’m glad I made it here before closing.” Marybelle smiles, coming up to the opposite side of the counter.
“Is everything all right?” Concern etches my voice. Marybelle might seem to be in a good mood, but the fact she’s here at closing searching me out has my stomach rolling.
“Of course. It’s just, well…” She sighs, a half-smile gracing her lips, almost as if in pity. “I’ve decided to retire early.”
“Oh. That’s great.” I don’t know why she needed to rush to tell me, especially since she’s been semi-retired for years, but I’m happy for her. Though, the pity in her eyes has me questioning how happy I should be about this announcement.
“It means I’m selling the bookstore,” she says gently as if she’s afraid of hurting me.
“Oh.” My eyes fall to the open drawer in front of me, not entirely sure what to say. I honestly don’t even know how I feel.I should feel sad, right?“That makes sense.” I push the drawer closed and lock it before tucking the key into my pocket. “Do you already have an interested buyer?” That’s the logical question to ask.
If she has an interested buyer and they don’t plan on keeping this as a bookstore…am I going to have to fire the rest of the staff too?
“No. I just officially decided to retire today. I honestly thought you might be interested in buying the place.” Marybelle reaches across the counter, placing her hand on my forearm, waiting for my eyes to meet hers before she continues. “You’ve put so muchof yourself into this place, and I thought you might even be able to turn it into that café you always dreamed about.” Her smile is so genuine. I can’t bring myself to tell her I have nowhere near the amount of money it would take to buy this place from her.
People like to whisper that the only town secret is about what happened between Jude and me, but the truth is, there are so many secrets this town knows absolutely nothing about. Like the fact that I don’t have money stashed away somewhere. They like to assume that since my father has made a lot of money from his investment firm, that I now have money too. But that’s not who my father is.
My father worked hard to build his mini-empire, and while he’s a very wealthy man with a lot of power, he’s always believed that I have to work for everything I want in life. Handouts from him have never been a thing and asking him for money has never crossed my mind—he’d never give it to me.
But he’s a businessman at heart. Maybe if I went to him with a business plan, asking for a loan or an investment instead of simply asking for the money with nothing in return…
“Can I let you know in a week?” I ask Marybelle, a plan forming in my mind.
“Of course! I sprung this on you with no warning.”
“Thank you, Ms. Marybelle. I really appreciate you thinking of me.” And I mean that. The more I think about it, the more excited I get. I might actually make my long-lost dream a reality.
“Always, my dear. And no matter what”—Marybelle reaches across the counter, taking my hand in hers—“I’ll make sure you have plenty of time to make arrangements for a new job. I would never leave you out in the rain.”
I squeeze her hand and offer her a tight smile. “The thought never crossed my mind.”
The soundof knocking on the door to the bookstore jolts me from my laptop in front of me.
I know I should have gone up to my apartment to work on my business plan, but something about being in the space has my creative juices flowing. I couldn’t stop jotting down ideas for what I could do with the store.
I’d need to renovate the entire place to make this happen, but I know I can do it if I have the money. Incorporating the café would mean losing a little shelf space, but as Ava pointed out when she first started, a good portion of the traffic coming through the doors of Falls Book Haven is coming for the baked goods, not the books.
Owning this bookstore means I could change up the inventory, and maybe I’d be able to get people interested in the books we sell here instead of just the sweets.
I love Marybelle, but she’s been stocking the same types of books for years, and more often than not, it only caters to the older generation of Ashford Falls. The fact that I convinced her to stock some newer thrillers—and, God forbid, romances—was so monumental, I almost fainted.
I have no idea how she’s stayed in business as long as she has, but the idea of revamping this space is bringing me back to life in a way I stopped believing was possible.
Glancing over my shoulder, I find Ava and Gage standing at the door, concern etched across their faces.
“Is everything all right?” Ava doesn’t even let me open the door before she’s pushing through, pulling me into a hug so tight I’m immediately worried.
“What are you talking about?” I may be talking to Ava, but my eyes are on Gage since she hasn’t let me go.
“We ran into Rose at The Diner, and she told us Marybelle is selling the bookstore.” Gage reaches for Ava, gently pulling her arms from around me.
